Noticing Ye Lingling fall silent, You Ye smiled faintly.
He didn't deny it — his target indeed wasn't Dogmatika.
In truth, Dogmatika was only a means to an end.
His true objectives went much further.
Strictly speaking, Branded was only his third goal.
His second goal was the Beast of the Abyss — the Despia world's abyssal fiends.
Their versatility and raw power made them a must-have.
No matter what deck you ran, having a Beast of the Abyss was never a waste.
And his final goal…
was the most formidable force in the entire Branded world—
The archetype people referred to simply as the Thunder Spirit,
the Lightning Flash Dragon.
Originally, You Ye hadn't even considered this path.
He'd assumed that the only way to obtain a Spirit or archetype
was by defeating it in battle.
But last night, Wu Ping brought him a message from Cheng Ying —
And that changed everything.
It made him realize that maybe, just maybe,
he'd misunderstood how "approval" from a Spirit truly worked.
After returning home, he confirmed his guess with Mu Ning.
And sure enough—he was right.
Before a Duelist reached Earth-rank,
a Spirit could voluntarily consume its own energy
to speak with a human Duelist not of its archetype.
If that Spirit willed it,
it could even bestow a single card.
And for Earth-rank Duelists and above—
If a summoned Spirit favored the Duelist,
it could share its entire archetype.
Even better, it could introduce you to other Spirits from its world.
Most people would ignore that last part.
They simply didn't have the relationships or strength to make it happen—
A Spirit would just dismiss them outright.
But You Ye was different.
The Spirit Realm's timeline didn't perfectly match Konami's official lore,
But the world-building did.
That meant the same canonical Spirits existed — just in different forms.
Which meant…
If he could reach Quam or Ecclesia,
He could find Albaz.
And through Albaz,
he could reach the Thunder Spirit or the Beast of the Abyss!
"Senior, are you sure about this?" Ye Lingling asked cautiously.
"Even after I reach Earth-rank, I can't guarantee the Spirit I summon will want to talk to you."
You Ye nodded. "I'm sure."
He understood her concern.
An Earth-rank Duelist might have the ability to summon Spirits,
But if the Spirit refused… nothing would happen.
Most Spirits viewed humans from on high.
To them, most Duelists were little more than beggars seeking approval.
Only a rare few achieved genuine equality with their Spirits.
That was why trying to gain an archetype through another's Spirit
was normally impossible.
But again, You Ye was not "most people."
"Alright then," Ye Lingling said after a pause,
"Let's head to the duel chamber and settle this with a proper Duel."
She could tell he was confident in his ability to connect with Dogmatika's Spirits.
If she kept trying to dissuade him, it'd just make her look reluctant.
"Good," You Ye nodded.
"I'll lead the way," Bai Yun'er offered cheerfully.
Whenever You Ye dueled, she learned more in a single match
than weeks of solitary practice.
Every decision, every chain, every fusion route—
It all made her want to take notes.
A few minutes later—
The Bai Family Duel Chamber.
You Ye (8000 LP) vs Ye Lingling (8000 LP)
The Duel rules are loaded.
Ye Lingling chose to go first.
Both players drew their starting five cards.
The Duel began.
"Senior, I'll show you today—
The true strength of my Dogmatika archetype!"
She declared confidently, her draw complete.
"I look forward to it," You Ye said lightly,
noting a trap in his opening hand that could activate directly.
He smiled faintly.
His tone said, "I'm interested."
But his eyes clearly said I'm not worried in the slightest.
Ye Lingling noticed too and steeled herself.
She focused, then began her turn.
"I activate the Continuous Spell Dogmatikamacabre!
Upon activation, I can add one Dogmatika Ritual Monster or Ritual Spell
from my Deck to my hand.
I'll add Dogmatika Alba Zoa!"
Then she raised another card.
"I activate the Ritual Spell Dogmatikalamity!
By sending my Level 12 Synchro Monster,
Titaniklad the Ash Dragon, from my Extra Deck to the GY,
I Ritual Summon a Level 12 Ritual Monster from my hand!"
"Ritual Summon!
Dogmatika Alba Zoa!"
As her card hit the Duel Disk,
the air around them shifted violently.
A colossal figure appeared—
bald, tongue lolling in deranged laughter,
blood-red arms gleaming wetly as they dripped with unseen gore.
Twin wings spread behind its back,
and from its chest jutted a massive, spear-like protrusion.
Dogmatika Alba Zoa
Spellcaster / Ritual / Effect / LIGHT / Level 12
ATK 4000 / DEF 4000
The pressure radiating from the Spirit made You Ye blink in genuine surprise.
Of all the monsters he'd faced so far,
only Obelisk the Tormentor had exuded greater raw force.
As expected of one of the most powerful Spirits in the Branded world—
Alba Zoa lived up to its reputation.
After summoning, Ye Lingling glanced at You Ye.
Seeing him unmoved, she continued.
"I activate my Continuous Spell's second effect!
Since I control a Dogmatika monster,
I can look at your Extra Deck and send one card from it to the GY!"
"Go ahead," You Ye said casually.
He didn't even flinch.
When her Duel Disk displayed its Extra Deck,
Ye Lingling's eyes widened in shock.
Her mind went blank.
As the heiress of a prestigious family,
she'd studied under high-level Duelists for over a year—
Her experience far surpassed Bai Yun'er's.
And she recognized every single card.
Even the rarest ones.
Among them—Predaplant Verte Anaconda,
and Red-Eyes Dark Dragoon.
Those were cards so powerful that no Duelist below Heaven-rank
should have possessed them.
You Ye wasn't just any Duelist—
He was a Master Duel King-tier.
After careful thought, she chose to send Predaplant Verte Anaconda to the GY.
It wasn't that she feared Dragoon less;
She'd simply noticed that he only had one copy of Verte,
but Dragoon came in twos.
"I activate Alba Zoa's effect!" she continued.
"For every two cards in your Extra Deck,
you must send one card from your hand or Extra Deck to the GY.
You have fourteen Extra Deck cards left—
So send seven cards in total!"
You Ye nodded calmly, sending seven without hesitation.
"Go on," he said with a smile.
"Finish your setup quickly. I'd like to see how I'll break it."
Her hand tightened slightly.
Why did he sound eager?
Still, she pressed on.
"I activate Nadir Servant!
I'll send Titaniklad the Ash Dragon from my Extra Deck to the GY
to add Dogmatika Maximus to my hand!
Then, I activate Maximus' effect—
by banishing the Titaniklad I just sent,
I Special Summon Maximus in Defense Position!
Then, I activate his effect:
We each send two monsters from our Extra Decks to the GY!"
You Ye, did so without complaint.
Her brow furrowed slightly.
He was too calm.
She glanced down at her hand again.
No matter what he was planning,
Her goal was simple — lock down his board,
Then on her next turn, clear out his remaining Extra Deck
and secure victory.
"I Normal Summon Dogmatika Ecclesia, the Virtuous!
Her effect activates—
I'll add one Dogmatika card from my Deck to my hand.
I choose the Field Spell Dogmatika Nation!"
"I activate Dogmatika Nation!
Then, I move to the End Phase!"
"In my End Phase," she continued,
"I activate Titaniklad's GY effect to add Dogmatika Fleurdelis, the Knighted, to my hand!
Then, Titaniklad's effect Special Summons Dogmatika Fleurdelis from my Deck!"
With her setup complete, she glanced up at You Ye,
making sure her field was airtight—
Then ended her turn.
"My turn—draw!"
He drew, glanced at the card, then asked mildly:
Mind if I go straight to the Battle Phase?
Bai Yun'er: Huh???Ye Lingling: What???